Just nine points separates the bottom five teams from the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, so every game down the stretch will essentially be a playoff game.
Tonight’s game against the Timbers in Portland is the Red Bulls’ final game against the Western Conference. And guess where the Timbers are?
That’s right, right in the middle of a playoff battle. The Timbers (11-9-8) sit in sixth place, just seven points behind the first-place Vancouver Whitecaps but only one point ahead of the San Jose Earthquakes for the final playoff berth in the West.
The Red Bulls (13-8-6) sit third in the East following their loss to the New England Revolution and two straight road wins by the Columbus Crew, but a victory tonight in Portland will vault the Red Bulls back into first place and clinch a playoff berth.
The situation of both teams adds a bit of drama to a game that already has a significant amount of buzz.
“The Timbers are a good team, especially at home,” said goalkeeper Luis Robles, who played four years at the University of Portland. “They’re in a position, at least in the standings, where these games mean a lot to them. They’re towards the (playoff) line, so we know that they’re going to be amped up. They’ve got a great environment, definitely one of the best in Major League Soccer.
“They’ve got some very skillful players, whether it’s (forward Darlington) Nagbe, their new DP (forward Fanendo Adi) or (midfielder/forward) Diego Valeri. They’re also very difficult to score against, so we know that’s a big task ahead of us, but it’s not something that we can’t overcome.”
Portland has scored just 29 goals this season, second fewest in the league, and Adi had 10 of them. No one else has more than three, so you know where the Red Bulls’ defensive eye will be. But it will be a defense with some changes since right back Connor Lade and defensive midfielder Dax McCarty will be sitting out due to yellow card accumulation.
Sal Zizzo, who played 60 games for the Timbers from 2011-13, will get the start in Lade’s place. Replacing McCarty may require a bit more thinking.
“We’ve been working with Sal at right back for a while,” coach Jesse Marsch said. “We think that that’s a good spot for him. We think he can fit the demands of that position for what we do, so we know that’s a good option. Sean Davis can be an option either deeper and Sacha (Kljestan) can be higher, Sean Davis can be an option higher and Sacha can be deeper, we can tilt Sacha deeper and play Shaun Wright (Phillips) or Mike Grella or Lloyd Sam in Sacha’s spot, so we have some flexibility there to play different guys. We’ll evaluate what’s best.
“We’re evaluating how many changes we’re going to make. We’ll obviously make at least two. I think they’ll be some other changes as well. A lot guys have been sharp and been close to getting on the field and have all earned opportunities. With a lot of games, and thinking about being physically ready to go, we’ll make a few changes.”
No matter who plays, Robles says the team has confidence in them.
“They’re going to do well,” said Robles, who will make his 100th consecutive start for the club tonight. “We have an understanding of how we want to play, how we want to press, how we want to attack. This is something that Jesse’s been drawing up since Day One of the preseason. That’s the expectation of whoever goes in there. The optimism and confidence that comes from the group is something that will stick with whichever player goes in there.”
The Red Bulls have weapons of their own. Though Bradley Wright-Phillips had a quiet game against the Revolution, he leads the club with 14 goals, along with seven assists. Kljestan, held scoreless against the Revs, has been hot of late and has boosted his scoring totals to six goals and a team-high 10 assists. Grella (seven goals, seven assists) and Sam (seven goals, six assists) can’t be overlooked on the wings.
“We’ve got to play our style of soccer,” Zizzo said. “We’ve got to press, we’ve got to do all the things that got us towards the top of the league. There’s not much that needs to change. Even though we lost the last game everything was there as far as the fight. We’ve just got to be a little cleaner.”
It will be the second straight match on artificial turf for the Red Bulls, which could be a problem, although Portland has one of the better artificial turf fields in MLS.
“The turf in Portland is very different than the turf in New England,” Marsch said. “… This game will look differently than the New England game.”
Zizzo agrees.
“Some turf is bad, some turf is good,” he said. “Portland’s known to have very good turf over the years. Obviously they wet it so the ball will glide nice. If it’s bouncy at times it can be a problem, but when I played here, and with another team as well, it’s always been really nice.”
The Red Bulls have been on the road most of the week. After the New England loss Wednesday night they flew straight to Portland and have been training there. If you think that’s hard on a team, consider what the Timbers go through every year.
“It can be tough,” Zizzo said of the travel. “A lot of players haven’t experienced that, especially this year being in New York. We’ve taken the train to games. When I was here in Portland you fly to every game except for Seattle, so I’m kind of used to it. It’s never easy, especially on a short week.”
